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On March 18, 1997, the Wings took advantage of the Toronto Maple Leafs’ house-cleaning and added the 36-year-old. He was the fourth-highest-scoring defenseman in NHL history, purged by the Leafs for his age and salary. The Wings didn’t have to part with a player or a draft pick; all they had to do was pick up the prorated portion of Murphy’s $2.35 million salary for the 1996-97 season, and a portion of the following season’s $2.475 million salary.

Larry Murphy of the Detroit Red Wings in action during the NHL Stanley Cup Finals game against the Washington Capitals at the Joe Louis Arena in Detroit in 1998. The Red Wings defeated the Capitals 2-1.(Photo: Robert Laberge, Getty Images)

“We didn’t want to give up something from our team,” Scotty Bowman said at the time. At the time he held the dual roles of coach and director of player personnel.

The Wings were 33-21-15 at the time of the 1997 deadline. They were eager to shore up for the playoffs, having suffered the ignominy of being swept in the 1995 Finals by the New Jersey Devils and being ousted in the 1996 Western Conference finals by the Colorado Avalanche, a budding arch-nemesis.

The Wings were looking for a veteran defenseman to add to a corps that featured Nicklas Lidstrom, Vladimir Konstantinov, Slava Fetisov and Bob Rouse, and youngsters Jamie Pushor and Aaron Ward. Mathieu Dandenault was playing more on defense than at forward. Veteran Mike Ramsey was on the roster but played only two games in 1996-97 and retired that March.

Murphy was in his 17th NHL season and the Wings were his sixth team. He had 39 points in 69 games, but the Leafs were struggling (58 points, second-fewest in the Western Conference) and Murphy’s age, lack of speed and salary made him an easy scapegoat for boo-birds. Bowman didn’t care about any of that; Murphy had been part of Bowman's 1991 and 1992 Stanley Cup championship teams in Pittsburgh.

“He’s just an experienced defenseman,” Bowman said. “He’s very strong offensively. … I think it’s a good deal for us. I think he’ll fit in real good here.”

“It definitely helps,” Steve Yzerman said. “I think he can play regularly and help on the power play, which will give Nick and Vladdie a break.”

Murphy wore No. 55, a number last worn by Keith Primeau, sent to Hartford on Oct. 9, 1996, as part of the package for Brendan Shanahan. That trade was a humdinger; Wings owner Mike Ilitch sent his private plane to fetch Shanahan in time for that night’s game in Detroit. The Wings made another trade in January, acquiring forward Tomas Sandstrom. The Murphy trade happened with an hour to spare before the 3 p.m. deadline. Bowman was right: It was a good fit.

Murphy scored a goal in his Wings debut, a 4-1 victory over the Boston Bruins. He contributed six points in 12 regular-season games, but his value really showed in the playoffs — especially in the Stanley Cup Finals. The Wings faced the Philadelphia Flyers, home to the Legion of Doom: forwards Eric Lindros, John LeClair and Mikael Renberg, each at least 6-foot-2 and 230 pounds. The Flyers anticipated the Wings would use Konstantinov against the line, because he was the Wings’ grittiest — and dirtiest — defenseman. But Bowman countered with Murphy and Lidstrom, a pair known for their finesse and their offense. The Wings swept the Flyers, ending a 42-year Cup drought.

Senior vice president Jimmy Devellano would go on to refer to Murphy’s acquisition as the “move of moves,” because it was a low-cost, high-reward trade. Murphy helped the Wings repeat as champions in 1998, and played with the Wings until 2000-01, retiring with 1,217 points in 1,615 games. He stayed in the Detroit area after retiring and currently works for Fox Sports Detroit as a studio analyst for Wings games.